"I saw a different attitude from Tre at halftime," Lashlee said. "He took a little more of a leadership role. He and some others were a big part of, 'Hey, we're not quitting, we're going to go out and earn respect. We're going to win this ball game.'"

"I saw the same look in our guys' eyes that I saw at Mississippi State when we were getting frustrated and had to go to 2-minute drive," Lashlee said, referencing the Tigers' 24-20 victory in the final seconds in Week 3. "They never wavered and Tre was a big part of that and, man, he ran like he meant it."

Mason picked up almost half of his yards after contact, coach Gus Malzahn said Thursday.

"That ought to give him confidence and really our whole offense confidence," Malzahn said. "We have a guy who can really make those hard yards."

Auburn's Tre Mason reviews big rushing night, disappointing loss at LSUAuburn running back Tre Mason rushed for 132 yards and two touchdowns in a 35-21 loss at No. 6 LSU. It was his first 100-yard game against an SEC opponent, but he was disappointed with the first loss of the season. Mason talks more about the loss and his future Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013 in Baton Rouge, La.

Mason was the lone proven runner in the Tigers' backfield entering the season, but Cameron Artis-Payne and Corey Grant have also proven capable of being the leading rusher in any game. Mason led Auburn with 1,002 rushing yards last season. He's on his way to another 1,000-yard season and has 338 yards and four touchdowns to lead Auburn through four games.

The open week provided Grant an opportunity to heal. Coaches hope he is healthy next week as Auburn begins preparing for No. 21 Ole Miss.

The Tigers' strength this season is their running game, and coaches are trying to find ways to share the load in the backfield.

"Tre is going to have to run like that for us every week and then we'll get Cameron Artis-Payne more touches to keep from wearing Tre down," Lashlee said. "I think those two guys, along with Corey Grant, we know we've got to get those guys the ball more."